Events

Deadline: August 1st, 2022 Payment: $30 and a contributor's copy Theme: Horror/dark fantasy stories or images involving a forge, such as: items created by a forge—haunted armor, weapons, or cursed objects; demonic crafters or smiths using the forge; or the forge equipment itself. Theme For the first edition of the Fear Forge Anthology, I wanted to give a nod to the anthology's name and to the relationships that inspired it. Since the conception of Horrorsmith Editing, I have been focused on forging strong relationships within the author and horror communities. This anthology is a continuation of that, and I thought it only appropriate that it should reflect both in the name and the first edition's theme.     Please submit your unique, unpublished, horror or dark fantasy stories or images involving a forge, such as: items created by a forge—haunted armor, weapons, or cursed objects; demonic crafters or smiths who use the forge; or the forge equipment itself.    Details All stories and images should involve the forge in any variation of the methods used above. However, the forge must be a prominent feature within the story. Simply adding a forge in the background of an existing story will not make the cut.  All stories should be between 2000 and 6000 words in length. There may be some wiggle room over 6000 words if the story is exceptional. However, please do not depend on that. Any stories less than 2000 words will not be considered.  Images can be a figure, scene, or cover image.  All stories and images should be emailed to [email protected] beginning Friday, May 13, 2022.  Stories and images will be accepted until the anthology is full or until August 1, whichever comes first, so it will be to your benefit to submit as early as possible.  You may submit more...

Deadline: August 1st, 2022 Payment: $20 for authors, artwork payment is negotiated Theme: "Selfies" WE ARE GRIMOIRE, an online literary publication of the dark arts. We publish one themed issue annually that includes fiction, nonfiction, poetry, art, and work that moves beyond genre. B E F O R E   Y O U   S U B M I T The best way to know what we want is to look in our mirror (see below) and to read past issues of the magazine. You can find our archive here. We’re currently seeking: C A L L F O R S U B M I S S I O N S : T H E G O T H N A R C I S S U S Turning the camera on one’s self (the selfie, the reimagined self) as in Anna Tendler and Petra Collins; the way the camera can lie; technicolor interiors; melodrama; a goth Eve Babitz; the curation of self-presentation; visual pleasure and self fantasy ie Mulvey; digitization and pixelation of self; the mise en scene of a Room of One’s Own; absence and the opportunity for reinvention; Leila Taylor’s Darkly; narcissism and dysmorphia; vanity via vanitas; If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power; paper dolls assembled into narrative tableaux; queer bodies and narratives; thirst traps; subcultural drag and the externalized markers of what we love; Men, Women, and Chainsaws; transgression. We’re looking for things that have this vibe, or that play with form like this, but we’re also open to interviews as well as literary and film criticism. If you see yourself in the mirror, submit your work to the newest reincarnation of Grimoire by AUGUST 1, 2022: A D D I T I O N A L L Y As part of our Goth Narcissus issue, Grimoire...

  Deadline: August 1st, 2022 Payment: 3 cents per word and a copy of the magazine Theme: YA Horror Dark Moon Digest, the quarterly magazine published by Perpetual Motion Machine, is now open for submissions to our special annual young adult edition titled Night Frights. We want to introduce young minds to the fabulous world of horror fiction. Click HERE to purchase the previous two issues, especially if you want to get a better sense of what kind of stories we’re looking to publish in issue two. Interested in submitting to Night Frights? Read on… What we want: the same awesome stories that we use for our quarterly magazine. We want stories with complex characters and new ideas. Scare us. But also, inspire young readers into a lifelong obsession with the genre. Cool it on the profanities, no overly graphic sexual situations, etc. Consider the following scenario: we are selling books at a local county fair. A family approaches with their kids (9 and 11 years old, maybe). One of the parents asks, “Is this okay for my kid?” We want to be able to confidently answer, “Yes,” without going through a long interrogation of what they’re allowed to read and watch at home. If this seems like a very specific scenario, that’s because it’s something we’ve lived through more times than we can count, as we sell books at many local fairs. Stories should not exceed 3,500 words. No reprints. No multiple submissions. Simultaneous submissions are fine. All submissions should be in a legible font (think TNR) with your contact information in the upper left-hand corner. We are not too strict on format, but some consistency to readability would be nice. Deadline is August 1st. Please do not query us asking the status of your story before September 1st. Payment will be 3 cents per word and a...

Deadline: August 1st, 2022 Payment: 6 cents/word Theme: Stories featuring hysteria that are Dark speculative, widely defined. Hysteria Irrational. Frenzied. Unreasonable. Unable to speak their own experiences. In the case of abortion specifically, we have been told for decades in the United States that Roe v. Wade was safe and that we were overreacting, illogical, needlessly aggressive—hysterical. Now look. We were none of those things. Aseptic and Faintly Sadistic: An Anthology of Hysteria Fiction, which is presented by CHM and will benefit the Chicago Abortion Fund, is seeking dark speculative fiction from anyone directly at risk as a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v. Wade, defined inclusively. Guidelines Genre: Dark speculative, widely defined. Don’t self-reject! Theme: Hysteria. Interpret the theme broadly. You don’t have to beat me over the head with the connection. I am willing to look at everything from retellings of “The Yellow Wallpaper” to sci-fi space opera rockstars. Feel free to take on one of the many faces of the monstrous patriarchy directly. Because if you can’t now, when the heck can you? Open To: Anyone directly at risk as a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v. Wade, defined inclusively Word Count: Maximum 5,000 words, no minimum. Reprints: No. Multiple Submissions: No. Simultaneous Submissions: Yes! But please alert us immediately if the piece is accepted elsewhere and needs to be withdrawn. Pay:  6 cents/word (USD) As this is a charity anthology, authors who would like to contribute more and who are safe to do so may waive pay. This is completely optional, and we will never ask you to do this; you can only request it upon acceptance. Date Open: July 18 Date Closed: August 1 Format: Shunn-ish. I don’t need your home address or phone number, we haven’t even met. https://www.shunn.net/format/story.html...

Submission Window: July 1st - August 1st, 2022 Payment: Short Story-2,500 words or less. $0.01 USD per word/$25 USD max, Poems-less than 200 words $10, Flash Fiction-less than a 1,000 words $0.01 USD per word/$10 USD max Theme: Dark Shadows: The Gay 90s; closeted, cast out, or converted. The Last Girls Club Magazine is a quarterly feminist horror magazine that publishes international short stories and poems from the female gaze. It is an homage to the scary comics and zines of the late 20th century. This season's theme is Dark Shadows: The Gay 90s; closeted, cast out, or converted. This issue is dedicated to my dear friend Paul, who died of cirrhosis in '00s. We worked the graveyard shift together at a Texas gas station in the 90s. The stories he shared with me of growing up gay in the South, with a deeply religious emotionally scarred mother broke my heart. The 80s Satanic Panic led to a religious fervor that cast a long shadow over society and personal freedoms. If you lived it, you know exactly what I'm referring to: the friends on the streets in their early teens, the weird homophobic rants of priests and relatives, the amazing clubs and hangouts hidden in seedy alleys that were occasionally raided by truckloads of skinheads or rednecks, sometimes cops looking for "underage drinking", the disgusting older repressed trolls who paid for oral in the dark, while in the daylight stood in government buildings and expounded on family values and morality, the overall perception that AIDS was a punishment for sin not a disease/pandemic that should be addressed. That is the backdrop for our stories in the Fall issue. Paul loved Rosemary's Baby, the Wizard of Oz, and Dark Shadows. If you manage to insert a swanky older Euro trash cousin...

Submission Window: August 1st - 3rd. 2022 Payment: 8 cents per word for original, 2 cents for reprints, For artwork: $10 for the non-exclusive right to use each image, for as long as the site is online.  If we publish a print collection we will pay a pro-rata share for each image used. Theme: Well written original work in science fiction, fantasy, myth, legend, fairy tales, and eldritch, in written, podcast, video, and/or graphic story form, and from around the world. Note: Reprints welcome     Submissions Schedule We have a new submissions schedule as of June 1, 2020: The first and second day of every month, 12 am of the 1st to 12 am of the 3rd, E.S.T. Only one submission per person. For reading impaired individuals, our submissions manager and ‘forget password’ have a captcha compatible with screen readers. We pay 8¢ per word for new fiction, 2¢ per word for fiction reprints, 2 – 6¢ per word for new fact-based work, 1- 4¢ per word for reprinted fact articles. For new poetry, we pay $1 a line, reprints would be 50¢ a line, up to 40 lines. We’ll look at longer poems but that would be a hard sell, and words over 40 lines would be paid at 6¢ per word. We began The Kepler Award to recognize and encourage writers of excellent science fiction and fantasy stories that creatively extrapolate on known science in constructive and exciting ways. You can learn about The Kepler Award here. You can read a copy of our standard contract here.   It can be varied as needed to include the rights of translators, voice actors, etc. Writers Guidelines We accept new work as well as reprints, prose and poetry, anywhere from 1000 word flash fiction on up, but all else being equal,...

Submission Window: June 1st to August 15th, 2022 Payment: $.08/word Theme: When We Were Getting High, My Last Trick ‘r Treat, Body Grotesquerie, Ominous Visitors From Deep Space, and Out in the Fields, Forests, and Lakes From June 1st until Aug 15th we’ll accept original 500-1500 word flash horror fiction for the second installment in our Campfire Macabre series. No reprints. Paying $.08/word. Send stories to [email protected] attached in doc or rtf. There will be four to five themes. Please only write one story per theme. You may submit stories for more than one theme, but please submit all your stories at one time in the same email. In the subject line of your email please put your story title, theme, wordcount. If you sub more than one story put the wordcount, theme, and titles of the other stories in the body of your email. Below we’ll give you some hints at stuff we like, but you’re welcome to interpret the themes more broadly. Story themes subject to change before June 1st. Themes: When We Were Getting High Oasis. The Chronic. 90s. That kid in HS that dropped acid every morning before school. My Last Trick ‘r Treat You’re 12 or 13 out trick-or-treating with your pals, having the time of your life–and somewhere in the back of your mind you knew this was probably the last night of your childhood. Make it spooky. Body Grotesquerie “Your body is like a charcuterie board for worms and maggots.” -Something I think I read on social media. Ominous Visitors From Deep Space Everyone knows that aliens love 80s slashers, so they emulate them when they land in your backyard. It’s like with kids and violent video games and movies; except for real. Out in the Fields, Forests, and Lakes Out here in the fields,...

Deadline: August 15th, 2022 Payment: 5 cents per word Theme: horror/dark fiction Breakdown of content:   8 fiction pieces (approximate word lengths) – 1x 5000, 1x 3000, 1x 2500, 2x 1500, 3x 500 3-5 non-fiction pieces – 1 article, 1-2 briefs, 1 interview and/or review – Fiction:   We are looking for horror/dark fiction pieces between 500-5000 words firm. Common sense when submitting please. We do not accept stories that involve the sexual abuse/exploitation of minors direct or implied. We are not looking for pure shock value. All components of your story should have merit. Gore for gore’s sake is not what we are looking for.   Our pay rates 5 cents per word All payments are made in US funds via PayPal.   We accept submissions during the following reading periods , with an expected response time of up to 16 weeks. This way we are able to accommodate all the submissions we receive. If you have not heard back from us after 16 weeks, please feel free to send us an update query.   WINTER ISSUE: August 15 – November 15   SPRING ISSUE: November 16 – February 15   SUMMER ISSUE: February 16 – May 15   FALL ISSUE: May 16 – August 15   While not a requirement, we strongly suggest you pick up a copy of the digital magazine to help better understand the types of work we’re looking for. All submissions must be sent via e-mail to: [email protected] as an attached word document or .rtf with the word “Fiction Submission – STORY TITLE” in the subject line. In the body of the email include a word count. A short bio is welcome, but not mandatory. Please also include if you wish your story considered for both the quarterly print and the website publication. Note compensation rates are different for website so be certain.   ***VERY...

Deadline: August 15th, 2022 Payment: 10 Euro Theme: Any stories related to trains Note: Reprints welcome Wanted: Stories about trains, tracks and railway stations. Especially welcome: Creepy, spooky tales about haunted trains Stories with strong settings Locations in Africa, Asia, Australia, NZ, South America Unusual trains – e.g. a suspended train, an underground train Genre Gothic, Horror, Fantasy, Mystery Mood Suspenseful, atmospheric, creepy Length Any Reprints (previously published stories) Yes – very welcome, provided you own the copyright Multiple submissions (submitting several stories to this anthology) Yes Simultaneous submission (submitting to other markets at the same time) No problem Payment Flat fee, 10 Euro per story on publication (This anthology is essentially a reprint market, featuring previously published stories, and the fee reflects this.  We’ll consider previously unpublished stories as well, but they won’t get a bigger payment.) Rights One-time publication rights for this anthology. The writer retains all rights to the story and can publish it elsewhere. We believe strongly that writers, not publishers, should own the copyright to their stories. Note regarding previously unpublished stories:  we will consider new works, and you will keep the copyright and can also sell the stories elsewhere. However, keep in mind that some markets  buy only previously unpublished stories. Once your story has been published in this anthology, it will no longer be eligible for those markets. Editor Rayne Hall Submission Period 2 June – 15 August 2022 Decisions Selected authors will be notified before 30 September 2022, probably much earlier. If we like your story, but it’s not quite right, we may ask for changes (especially in the case of previously unpublished stories).  You can decide whether you want to make those changes and have the story included. Requested changes need to be made promptly. Similar Anthologies This anthology will be...

Deadline: August 15th, 2022 Payment: $0.02 per word and a contributor's copy Theme: Horror stories with a specific theme, read below. Ends On Monday, August 15, 2022 5:20 PM Description Dirt in the Sky is the new horror mini-anthology from Filthy Loot focusing on juxtapositions. We’re looking for stories about the haves and have-nots, but also seeding elements of genres like alt-lit with body horror, or dirty realism with transgressive horror. Heady themes in the sugarcoating of genre fiction. Since I only said it 3 other times in this paragraph, this is horror.  We’re looking for things that are general, but very specific—so if you have any questions, please just contact us. What we’re not looking for: sci-fi/fantasy, experimental, torturous adult content, anything too humorous or bizarro. Guidelines Stories 2-5k, edited & ready for print, reprints accepted. One submission per release, please include word count, title and name on the attached Word Document Authors retain all rights Payment of $0.02 per word + a physical copy upon release (with the option to buy more at cost) Please contact us with any questions. Submit Notes on what this press likes: Focused on misfit fiction (transgressive, existentialist, horror, and other cult fictions) and odd other ideas — we publish zines, art stuffs, & books in both limited edition and open formats. Via: Filthy Loot.